New Start, New Job, New Life
by shiorioji
Summary: Noah has just moved out to live on his own for the first time. He plans to begin his new life in a small village named Windvale, but what he did not plan for was becoming the mayor of the town. Considering the real mayor hasn't shown up, it wouldn't hurt to take the position for a day or so until they show up...would it? Rating may go up in later chapters.


Author's Note: So, first animal crossing fanfic. I'll probably be alternating between this story and my other Skyrim one, but I'll try to update often if this is liked enough. Tell me what you think, and if I can improve somehow, please let me know.

"Hey, do you mind if I sit with you?" a gleeful voice asked. A boy who had been fast asleep a moment before opened his eyes and tried to not show any signs of shock, the speaker slowly coming into focus. It was a blue cat with a large grin. It was almost as tall as he was and wore a red and black checkered shirt with no pants, like the other animals he had met on the train. Despite seeing animals capable of speech before, he still wasn't used to them talking...or wearing clothes, for that matter.

"...I suppose I cannot stop you," the boy responded. The feline smiled again and sat in the seat opposite him.

"My name is Rover, by the way. It's kind of strange to be travelling like this again. Haven't done this much traveling by train since 2002 or so...Man, that's weird," he muttered, shaking his head. "Anyway, what's your name?"

"Noah." He removed his glasses and tried to rub the sleep from his eyes. Stupid train...the seats were harder than rocks and obviously were not meant for naps.

"Noah. Cool name," Rover responded, looking out the window. "So, where you headed?"

The boy put his glasses back on and stared at the cat. _...I'm talking...to a cat. This is so weird..._ he thought. "Windvale. You?"

Rover's eyes widened. "Nowhere special. Anyway, Windvale? I love that place! Heard their mayor stepped down recently, though."

"Mm." Noah leaned back in the seat, unsure of what to say. He couldn't help wondering why the mayor had "stepped down". Did he die? Was he fired? Was it merely a matter of retirement? What if he turned the town into some horrible place and was kicked out? _What am I thinking, going here?_

"Regardless, I'm sure you'll love it there," the cat laughed. "Why are you going?"

"Moving out."

"Really? How old are you?"

"Fourteen."

Rover went silent for a minute, watching the forest speed by. "...I won't ask. Not my business. Besides, I met another kid about your age who was moving out ten years ago. I actually had the same conversation with him that I'm having with you."

Noah raised an eyebrow. "Ten years ago? How old are you?" he asked. Rover laughed.

"Older than you'd think. I've spent my life wandering the world and could spend hours telling you about my travels. But it looks like we're just about to pull into Windvale," he said as they passed a sign that said in big letters, "Welcome to Windvale! Population: 6".

"Well, I guess this is where we part ways. I'll see you soon, I'm sure of it," Rover smiled. The train screeched to a stop and Noah stood up, straightening his glasses.

"I guess. Bye, then," he said, waving to Rover and stepping off the train. A monkey greeted him as the train pulled away from the station. He forced a smile and waved back as though a monkey talking to him was perfectly normal. He left the station, expecting to have to look for someone to ask for directions. What he did not expect were six animals waiting for him, all with a big smile; two small bears, a horse, a dog, a bird and a deer.

"Welcome!" they said gleefully in unison.

"...um...thanks..." Noah muttered, averting his eyes, not sure what was going on. Was this how they greeted all new citizens? The dog stepped forward. She had yellow fur, a pleasant smile and wore a green vest, a white shirt under the vest and a purple skirt.

"Welcome to Windvale," she said, practically radiating joy. "I'm sure you will grow to love it here!"

"...thank you. Is this normal?" Noah asked, gesturing to the crowd of animals still staring at him with those creepy smiles...

The dog looked a bit confused. "Well...yes. You're the new mayor we've been told about. Of course we're going to give you a warm welcome."

The boy laughed, but quickly stopped when he realized that no one was joining him. "...you're serious. Sorry, but I'm not the mayor," he told her.

"Of course you are. We were told that our new mayor would be arriving on this train today. I must say, though, I didn't expect...you know..." she leaned in a little. "Someone with no fur or feathers."

Noah looked at the other animals, hoping one would point out that he could not be the mayor. When they all remained silent, he said, "...look, there has obviously been a mistake. I'm not your mayor. I came to live here, not take charge."

The dog sighed. "You must be tired from your travelling. I don't blame you, really; those trains are not very fun to ride on. In any case, follow me. I'll take you to the Town Hall where we'll set everything up." She walked off and the animals did the same, all going in different directions. Noah followed her hesitantly. What the heck was going on? He wasn't the mayor, and nothing he said was convincing them.

_ Are all animals this stubborn?_ He thought.

"I'm Isabelle, by the way," she smiled at him as they walked through the town. Trees were everywhere, and only a few houses were visible. Flowers of various colors were planted in a couple places. "I'm your new secretary. Whenever you need help or advice just let me know."

He was about to protest again, but decided against it. The town obviously needed a mayor, and the real one clearly wasn't here at the moment. If they weren't going to believe him, what was the harm in taking on the position until the real one showed up? He may have no experience, but he was better than nothing.

They arrived at a building after a few minutes of silence. Isabelle opened the door and walked inside, holding it for Noah. He thanked her and walked inside as well.

The Town Hall was nothing special; a few black chairs sat to his right, while a plant was to his left. A counter stood between them and another counter with a computer and a single black chair behind it.

"Well, here we are," Isabelle said. "This is the Town Hall. You might be spending quite a bit of time in that chair in the back, I'm afraid."

Noah stood awkwardly by the door while Isabelle went behind the first counter and brushed a bit of dust off of it.

"Let's get you set up and registered as a citizen. You can't be the mayor if you don't live here," she laughed, pulling out a clipboard and a pen. "First, what's your name?"

_They don't even know who to expect? I think I had better suggest to whoever is really in charge to replace Isabelle..._ he thought. "Noah."

She scribbled for a moment and then asked, "Age?"

"Fourteen."

The dog looked shocked. "You're only fourteen!?" she exclaimed, but then shrugged. "...well, I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm not that much older, really. Moving on. Um...birthday?"

"December 30." He felt like adding, "Are you capable of doing the math or should I tell you the year?" but felt that sass wasn't a good idea at the moment. Isabelle smiled.

"Okay. Now that we're done with that, all that's left to do is find you a house. Nook's Homes on Main Street is where you need to go. Tom will help you with the details. To get there, go back to the train station and turn right, then take the steps past the tracks. If you need help, ask one of the villagers. Most are friendly and would gladly help you." She put the clipboard down and smoothed out her skirt. When she looked back up, Noah was still standing by the door. "Did you need something else?"

"Um...what did you mean by, 'most'?" he asked tentatively.

Isabelle shifted uncomfortably. "Oh. There...is one villager who isn't the nicest. The bird...his name is Nese. I mean, he's not _mean_; he'd probably help you if you needed it, but...he has a record of being a bit unpleasant. You saw him at the station. Please don't be biased against him, though," she added quickly. "He really is a good person, he just..."

She trailed off. The boy nodded and left the Town Hall.

* * *

_This was a bad idea._ Noah stood in front of a small building with a sign on it that read, "Nook's Homes" in blue letters. _Why am I even doing this? It's not like I'm supposed to be in this position. Well...I do need a house. I suppose I would have to do this anyway._ He sighed and opened the door.

The inside was, unlike the Town Hall, a bit unusual; on his right was a rather large model of a castle. In front of him, two doors, one red and the other blue, and a green mailbox stood on pedestals. In the back were more objects that he could not identify, though one looked like it might be the front of a house.

"Welcome, welcome," said a raccoon that Noah had not noticed standing near the doors. He was wearing a green vest with a white shirt under it. It reminded Noah of the kinds of vests you would see a stereotypical nerd wearing and tried not to laugh. "You must be Noah, the new mayor. Isabelle already called ahead and told me about you. My name is Tom Nook. Now, you need a house, correct? I'll help you. Let's go back to town, yes?"

"A-alright. Why?" the boy stuttered, following Nook out of the building.

"You need to pick a spot for your new house. It can be anywhere in the town as long as it is not too close to another building, a cliff or on the beach. We obviously cannot build on sand, and you'll need a lot of room for future expansion."

Once they arrived back in the village, Noah began considering spots for his house, but none really seemed good enough. He wanted a house that was near the beach and not too close to everyone else. However, every time he found a location that might work, Nook told him that he couldn't do it for various reasons.

"Would you like a map of the town?" the raccoon asked after the forth rejection. Noah nodded and accepted the map, opening it and scanning for a good place that he had not tried.

"...what about here?" he said after a moment, pointing to a space in the upper left corner. Once built, the house would be beside a cliff and would overlook the beach, but would still have a lot of room. It was also far away from any other buildings.

"Yes, yes. That will work perfectly. I can take care of trees and flowers and will begin work immediately," said Nook, clapping his hands together. "Come by my shop later. We'll discuss the price." He began to walk away but stopped after a few feet. "Oh. I almost forgot. You still need a place to rest your head, yes? I have a tent that will work nicely."

Thirty minutes later, and with quite a bit of assistance from Noah and Colton, the horse villager who had been walking by, the tent was finally set up. Nook left shortly after this, telling Noah to come by whenever he had time.

"Um...thanks for your help," Noah mumbled to Colton. The horse bowed with a smile.

"It was no trouble. What kind of gentleman would I be if I did not help someone in need? Besides, you are the mayor. I must help whenever necessary, and I am glad to do so," he remarked, sounding rather formal.

"You don't have to be so proper with me," the boy told him, going over to the cliff and sitting down, his feet dangling over the edge. "I know you're always like that, but...Besides that I'm not even the real mayor, I don't deserve any more respect than someone else would. After all, a mayor is nothing and useless without people to govern. If anything, I should be showing all of you respect."

Colton laughed, sitting down beside Noah. "You're right; I am always a perfect gentleman. Anyway, you sound very wise. That's good. If I am to be honest, I was worried your youth would not allow you to make good decisions. As for not being the mayor...why do you keep repeating this? You said the same thing earlier."

"Because I'm not," he said simply, staring out over the ocean. Gentle waves rocked back and forth and crashed lightly onto the beach below. "I came here to be a resident, nothing more. The only reason I'm agreeing for the moment is because I know you all need a mayor, and having me is better than nobody. I'm just waiting for the real one to show up, and why am I telling you this? You probably don't believe me or care."

"I do believe you. If you say you're not, you're not. But really, Noah; if the real mayor was going to show up, he or she would have already. At the very least, they would have sent a letter ahead telling us about their delay. I don't think they're coming. And of course I care."

"Yeah, that's what they all said," the boy muttered quietly.

"I'm sorry?"

"Nothing."

Colton placed a hand...hoof...on the boy's shoulder, which felt a bit odd. "You may be the mayor from now on, but I hope that does not mean we cannot be friends. If you ever need anything, I'll be there for you." The horse stood up and bowed again. "See you later, Mayor Noah."

Colton left. Noah stayed looking at the ocean for a while before standing himself and going inside the tent. He would talk to Nook tomorrow. As he lay on the floor, not bothering to grab the blanket beside him or turn on the lantern he was given, he couldn't help wondering if he had made the right choice. What if he really did have to do this? Would he do a good job? Not likely, but he had to try.

_I suppose only time will tell_ he thought, taking off his shoes, socks and glasses and rolling over onto his side. He needed to get to sleep; if he was going to be mayor, he likely had a long day ahead of him tomorrow.


End file.
